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Online Soil Information Resources for Victoria Department of Primary Industries. Primary Industries Research Victoria (PIRVic) – Werribee Centre. 621 Sneydes Road Werribee, Vic 3030, Australia. Email: mark.imhof@dpi.vic.gov.au Abstract
The Victorian Resources Online (VRO) website2 is the key means for disseminating soil and landform information via the internet in Victoria. This paper provides an overview of the website and various approaches used in the dissemination of soil related information. Land resource survey reports are being provided as downloadable documents, as well as interactive web-pages, whereby clickable maps reveal map unit descriptions and soil profile information (with links to glossary entries). In addition to soil survey products, information is also provided on geomorphology, soil management and land degradation. The website is attempting to ‘bridge the gap’ in information availability and comprehension for a wide target audience. Some of the information presented on the website was previously unpublished or only available as part of a specialised scientific publication or thesis. By providing a more general description with visual aids, a wider range of people will gain an improved understanding of Victorian soils and landscapes. A key element of the project is the development of partnerships with key information providers and users (both within and outside of government). These focus on developing ‘best-available’ and ‘user-friendly’ information products at various levels of detail. Key Words
Land resource assessment, soil/landform mapping, soil information, website, internet
Introduction
The rapid development of digital communication technologies in recent years has created opportunities for making soil and land survey information more accessible. Over the last decade there has been significant progress in improving both the quality of information presentation and its flexibility to cater for the diverse needs of a range of clients and users. Various agencies in Australia are using the Internet and CD presentations to present spatial information linked with images of soil profiles, analytical data and associated interpretations for land use. It is now generally recognised that presentation of information should be in forms that maximise the potential to produce knowledge and understanding of the land resource (Imhof et al, in press).
Traditional representations of spatial information, such as maps and associated technical reports are very useful products. Whilst having an important role to play in the supply of land resource information to the community, these products do have some disadvantages, such as the costs of mass production and distribution. Once printed, these traditional information packages can become limited in supply and unable to be readily updated, giving traditional information packages a limited useful life span. Not being aware of the existence of the products in the first instance may also be a barrier to the use of these products by the wider community.
More recently there have also been significantly improved communication activities aimed at a variety of audiences to increase their awareness and understanding of land resource assessment (LRA) work. In Victoria, a wide range of information products generated from soil and land survey work is being made available as CD products and on-line through the Victorian Resources Online (VRO) website. This is the key means of disseminating soil and land survey-based information via the internet in Victoria. It presents a wide range of land resource products, together with other natural resource information (e.g. climate, landuse, water, biodiversity, vegetation, and land and water management).
The VRO website is actively used and usage has been steadily increasing, as too has web content. During October 2003, VRO web usage averaged 3 413 page-views/day and 866 user-sessions/day. This was an increase in usage of over 60% from December 2002. As at May 2004, the VRO website had over 6 000 web-documents available online – compared to 4 000 web-documents in June 2003. A significant proportion of this content has been soil and land related information.
Methods
Information is provided on the website at a range of scales – from Statewide and regional overviews to more detailed catchment and sub-catchment levels. Broader scale overview maps have been developed and more detailed soil, soil/landform and land system maps (at scales ranging from 1:250 000 to 1:32 000) are being provided in varying formats.
Land resource survey reports are being provided as downloadable documents (in portable document file – ‘pdf’ – format). The download speed available to prescribed clients needs to be considered in development of information products. Downloadable documents on the VRO website are maintained at a maximum size of 1.5 Mb to facilitate loading. For large reports and maps this often requires a document to be split into a number of separate downloadable files. Optimisation is required to provide documents that are of good readable and printable quality and also within the maximum file size constraint.
Most historic reports (before 1995) are not available in a digital form, so need to be re-typed and/or text-scanned (using optical character recognition). After scanning, documents need to be re-formatted (e.g. headings, fonts, type, page settings) and spell-checked. Diagrams and maps are all separately scanned and re-inserted into the digital version of the document. An A3-page scanner is used to scan larger format maps.
A number of soil/landform maps are also provided as interactive web pages, whereby users can click onto maps to reveal associated map unit descriptions and soil profile information (with links to glossary entries). These maps are developed in ‘gif’ file format from GIS coverages.
A major component of information development involves liaison with relevant soil and land specialists. Many of these are retired ex-Government employees. Developing partnerships with these people is critical to ensuring that knowledge is captured and effectively updated.
Results
Statewide soil information
A range of statewide-focused soil information products3 is available on the Victorian Resources Online website. The Coastal Acid Sulfate Soils section4, for example, contains information developed from a DPI report: Acid sulfate soil hazard maps – guidelines for coastal Victoria (Rampant et al 2003). It includes a downloadable ‘pdf’ file format version of the report as well as downloadable maps (at 1:100 000 scale) that can be accessed by clicking from a statewide key map. A number of links to other websites about acid sulfate soils are also included. Figure 1 below provides a ‘screen-grab’ view of the main Acid Sulfate Soils webpage.
Figure 1. Example page from Coastal Acid Sulfate Soils section.
The use of search directories can be a useful means for users to locate survey information for specific areas of interest. The Soil and Land Survey Directory5 on the VRO website provides over 100 bibliographic records of Victorian soil and land surveys (including report details, survey details, accessibility). This is based on a hardcopy directory (Martin 1987) and continues to be updated as new surveys are completed. A search facility enables a user to identify a relevant soil survey listing - based either on a Local Government Area, catchment management region or via a key word. The listing provides some basic information about the report (e.g. authors, scale, availability of analytical results etc) as well as relevant Departmental libraries where a hardcopy report is available. More recently, links to downloadable versions of these reports are being provided as the reports are made available online in digital format. Figure 2 shows the layout for a webapge that allows downloading of a Land Systems report.
Figure 2. Example page showing layout for accessing a downloadable report.
The surface soil pH map6 provides an example of a map that provides a generalised overview of the State. The map was created from a statewide soil chemistry data set by applying geo-statistical techniques ('kriging') to the mean pH of the locations and indicates the broad geographic trends in the acidity and alkalinity of surface soils across Victoria's agricultural lands. Additional information relevant to acid soils is also provided. Figure 3 below shows the statewide-overview surface soil pH map.
Figure 3. Surface soil pH map used on the website.
Historical context
Websites provide an opportunity to publish information that may not otherwise be provided in a formal publication. An example includes the development of web-page information relating to the history of soil and land survey in former Victorian government departments. These have been developed in association with former (now retired) employees of these organisations and provide an opportunity to capture the history of survey and add anecdotes and historical photos. A history of former Department of Agriculture soil surveys7 is provided together with an historical perspective on Soil Conservation Authority Land System surveys. Where available, photos of previous staff working in the field have been included. Many of these original photos have never been published and risk being lost to corporate memory if not captured in this process. Figure 4 below provides an example of a webpage detailing some of the history of Victorian soil and land survey.
Figure 4. Example page from ‘History of Department of Agriculture Soil Surveys’ section.
Land Degradation information8
Information on gully and tunnel erosion is being provided – relating to the distribution, development of, and reclamation of gully and tunnel erosion. Maps have been developed that show the distribution of erosion. In the case of gully erosion this has been developed from an unpublished map and for tunnel erosion has been developed from a map produced in a PhD thesis (Boucher 2002).
Also included are downloadable copies of historic reports (e.g. Erosion in Victoria 1938 and a map of Erosion in 1944 prepared for the former State and Regional Boundaries Committee). In addition, a number of links to land degradation information on other websites are included. Much of this information is now very scarce in hardcopy format – so providing it in a downloadable format on the website will significantly increase awareness of and access to it. Fig. 5 is an example of a map showing distribution of tunnel erosion in Victoria.
Figure 5. Map showing occurrence of tunnel erosion in Victoria (based on Boucher 1990).
This information on tunnel and gully erosion derived from specialists provides an example of how the website is attempting to ‘bridge the gap’ in information availability and comprehension for a wide target audience. The information presented on the website was either unpublished or only available as part of a scientific journal publication or specialised monograph. By providing a more general description with visual aids, a wider range of people will gain an understanding of the nature and distribution of land degradation in Victoria. They are then better able to further access more detailed information once they have understood this more basic level of information.
In the Corangamite region, information on landslips has been provided9. This includes a downloadable version of a paper by Dahlhaus and Miner (2002) on Landslide Risk Management Guidelines in a Municipal Planning Scheme (with permission of the Australian Geomechanics Journal). It provides a good example of presenting general overview information and then allowing the user to ‘drill down’ to more detailed information.
Soil Management information
Some basic soil management10 information about sodic soils, soil coalescence, acid soils and aggregate slaking and dispersion is provided. This will be further developed – and relevant regional-based reports will be incorporated over time. Wherever possible, soil management related information will eventually be linked to soil/landform mapping units – i.e. will have a spatial context. An example of ‘spatialising’ information occurs where maps showing the distribution of Ferrosols in the West Gippsland region are linked to reports that relate to management of Ferrosols11. Previously a number of such management related reports have not been available together with a suitable spatial perspective.
Regional overview soil maps
At the broad regional level, overview maps of major soil groups (based on Australian Soil Classification Orders) have been developed with appropriate regional soil experts. These are usually retired staff with extensive soil and landform survey experience in particular regions. These overview maps are designed to provide the ‘bigger picture’ for the region – so, for example, it can be seen that Ferrosols are fairly common throughout regions such as West Gippsland, but non-existent or rare in other regions. These overview maps are often based on more detailed mapping (where available) and provide a whole-of-region perspective to the distribution of major soil types. Additional information is provided to give a broad understanding of the nature and distribution of these soils. Figure 6 below provides an example of an overview map depicting the distribution of Sodosols in the Corangamite region of Victoria.
Figure 6. Example of regional overview soil map for the Corangamite region.
Regional Soiland Land Survey information
For many soil/landform surveys completed after 1996, maps and associated information have been made available on the Victorian Resources Online website. Information for a number of regions in Victoria is presented in the form of image maps that can be clicked on to reveal information about mapping units and associated soil profile information. Additional information is also provided on geomorphology. Soil terminology is usually linked to a glossary of terms, which is another means by which ‘bridging’ information gaps can be facilitated. The glossaries are being continually enhanced with the inclusion of appropriate illustrative images.
For the West Gippsland region12, soil/landform information has been provided progressively once developed on a 1:100 000 mapsheet basis. A final hardcopy report is still in press so by providing information progressively on the website makes it immediately useable. Once a final publication is prepared it will also be provided on the website as a downloadable document. The information on soils of the Maffra region13 has been developed from a report by Sargeant and Imhof (2000) and has been updated as additional information (e.g. soil pit sites) has been made available. Information related to map units is accessible by clicking onto the relevant unit from the map legend. This links to a web-page that describes the map unit and provides links to soil profile information relevant to that map unit. Soil pit site information is presented in consistent formats throughout the website, with descriptions of soil profile morphology and presentation of soil physical and chemical data. Graphs are provided for selected soil properties showing trends down the soil profile. Figure 7 below provides a ‘screen-grab’ view of a soil profile description for the Maffra region.
Figure 7. Example page from the Maffra survey (Sargeant and Imhof, 2000) section.
A more recent survey of the Corangamite catchment management region (Robinson et al 2003) has been made available on the Corangamite sub-site of the VRO website14. This has been made available as a downloadable ‘pdf’ file format document (as originally published on CD). In addition, maps and information about soil groups and landscape units can also be accessed via a key map of the region – with users able to click onto a 1:00 000 mapsheet to enable a pdf map to be up-loaded. These maps are derived from the original report and provide an effective presentation, as ‘hill-shading’ is applied to show relief.
Soil survey information from detailed irrigation surveys
Downloadable versions of the original soil survey reports for a number of irrigation surveys are included on the website15. In addition, detailed maps are also available for viewing and downloading (in ‘pdf’ file format). These maps can be zoomed in at detail on the screen. Making these maps available has proved useful for regional staff who receive numerous requests for these maps (as the original reports have become quite scarce). These maps can be readily enlarged on-screen using an appropriate reader.
Figure 8. Example of detailed soil map from Goulburn Valley survey (Skene and Poutsma 1962).
Geomorphology information
A review of the basic Victorian geomorphic mapping framework, as presented by Jenkin (1988), has been undertaken over the past seven years by the Geomorphology Reference Group (composed of geomorphic experts within and outside of Government – and coordinated by David Rees, DPI). A revised hierarchy of geomorphic divisions of Victoria (1st, 2nd and 3rd tier) has been produced which will form part of further development of the Statewide Land Systems of Victoria. Mapping and description of 1st and 2nd tier units (at scales of 1:250 000 and smaller) is now being developed across the whole of Victoria, and in some regions (e.g. Corangamite, Glenelg-Hopkins and West Gippsland) this is being developed down to the 3rd and 4th tier level (i.e. to a 1:100 000 scale). As this information is developed it will be included on the website.
Figure 9. Geomorphic units in the Mallee region16 Figure 10. Geomorphology Reference Group members
A wide range of other geomorphic information (e.g. sites of geomorphic interest, eruption points of Newer Volcanics) is also being presented on the Victorian Resources Online website. Examples of this can be found on the Corangamite VRO website – relating to Geological and Geomorphological Sites of Interest in the Shire of Otway (Rosengren, 1984)17.
These are good examples of adapting site-based information into clickable maps that can be used to click onto sites and access relevant information for that site. In this instance, these hardcopy reports were not printed in large amounts and have become scarce. By publishing these sites onto a website they can be further expanded or enhanced over time.
Figure 11. Example pages from ‘Geological and Geomorphological Sites on Interest in the Otway region’ report.
The development of information products such as those emanating from the Geomorphology Reference Group shows the benefits of developing partnerships with key information providers. Developing effective partnerships provides a greater ‘sense of ownership’ of web-based material by the information providers, which will assist in future updating, enhancement and quality control.
Future Directions
Soil and land survey information will continue to be added to the Victorian Resources Online (VRO) website. This will include many hundreds of soil profile descriptions and associated data. All previous soil survey reports are being made available on the site as downloadable documents. Current soil/landform survey as well as geomorphology mapping and descriptions information will be made available as they are completed.
A major focus will now be on developing more detailed region-specific information for each of the eleven regional VRO websites and providing a ‘spatial context’ for a range of soil and land management related reports, studies and soil pit information.
Conclusion
The Victorian Resources Online (VRO) website represents a useful model for the effective dissemination of a wide range of spatial soil and land information. It relies on developing effective partnerships with key information providers and users; a continuous improvement approach to information product development; displaying information at varying scales and levels of generalisation, and attempting wherever possible to bridge user’s ‘knowledge gaps’.
References
Boucher SC (2002) The initiation and development of tunnel erosion near Costerfield, Victoria. Unpublished PhD thesis, School of Geography and Environmental Science, Monash University, Clayton.
Dahlhaus PG and Miner AS (2002) Implementing the AGS Landslide Risk management Guidelines in a Municipal Planning Scheme – A Case Study in the Colac Otway Shire, Victoria. Australian Geomechanics, Vol 37-2 pp 199-211.
Imhof MP, Chapman GA, Thwaites RN and Searle R (in press) Communication in: ‘Australian Soil and Land Survey Handbook – Guidelines for Conducting Surveys’. CSIRO Publishing.
Jenkin JJ (1988) Geomorphology in ‘Geology of Victoria’. (Eds Douglas and Ferguson).
Martin JJ (1987) A Directory to Soil Survey Information. Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
Rampant P, Brown AJ, Croatto, G (2003) Acid sulfate soil hazard maps – guidelines for coastal Victoria. CLPR Research Report No. 12. Department of Primary Industries.
Robinson N, Rees DB, Reynard K, MacEwan R, Dahlhaus P, Imhof MP, Boyle, G and Baxter, N (2003) A land resource assessment of the Corangamite region. Department of Primary Industries.
Rosengren N (1984) Sites of Geological and Geomorphological Significance in the Shire of Otway. Department of Conservation, Forests and Lands.
Sargeant IJ and Imhof MP (2000) Major Agricultural Soils of the Maffra Region. Department of Natural Resources and Environment.
Skene JKM and Poutsma TJ (1962) Soils and Land Use in Part of the Goulburn Valley, Victoria. Department of Agriculture.
Web links
2www.dpi.vic.gov.au/vro
3www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/pages/soil-home
4http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/696c4532f2cc03304a256718003e5c09/e9ded19b76c8b95fca256d09002074d9?OpenDocument
5http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/pages/soil-land-directory
6 http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/pages/surface-soil-pH
7http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/696c4532f2cc03304a256718003e5c09/41a6d48e41ed2dd3ca256d8600078a39?OpenDocument
8http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/pages/lwm_land_deg
9http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/coranregn.nsf/pages/coran_landslides?OpenDocument
10http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/vrosite.nsf/pages/soil_mgmt
11http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/wgregn.nsf/pages/wg_soil_intensive_cropping?OpenDocument
12http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/wgregn.nsf/pages/wg_soil_detailed
13 http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/wgregn.nsf/pages/wg_soil_maffra
14http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/coranregn.nsf/pages/soil_landform_map
15http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/gbbregn.nsf/pages/soil_survey?OpenDocument
16 http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/malregn.nsf/pages/mal_lform_elev_geomorphology?OpenDocument
17 http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/vro/coranregn.nsf/pages/corangamite_landform_significance 
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